Arizona Firearms Freedom Bill Proposes Jail time for Violations of the 2nd Amendment

Arizona Firearms Freedom Bill Proposes Jail time for Violations of the 2nd Amendment

Arizona Representatives Steve Smith, Adam Kwasman, Carl Seel, David W. Stevens, Bob Thorpe have introduced a bill that would prohibit the federal government from regulating “a personal firearm, a firearm accessory or ammunition that is owned or manufactured commercially or privately in this state and that remains exclusively within the borders of this state.”

HB 2291 would revise Arizona statutes by adding a section on firearms. The text of the bill simply states:

“A public servant or a federally licensed dealer who sells firearms in this state shall not enforce or attempt to enforce any act, law, statute, rule or regulation of the United States government relating to a personal firearm, a firearm accessory or ammunition that is owned or manufactured commercially or privately in this state and that remains exclusively within the borders of this state.”

Also,

“An official, agent or employee of the United States government shall not enforce or attempt to enforce any act, order, law, statute, rule or regulation of the United States government relating to a personal firearm, a firearm accessory or ammunition that is owned or manufactured commercially or privately in this state and that remains exclusively within the borders of this state.”

Furthermore the bill states:

That any federal law or regulation effective on or after January 1, 2013 which attempts to do any of the following “is unenforceable within the borders of this state”.
1. Ban or restrict ownership of a semiautomatic firearm or any magazine of a firearm.
2. Require any firearm, magazine or other firearm accessory to be registered in any manner.

Plus, this bill has teeth; “A person who violates subsection B of this section is guilty of a class 6 felony.” So what is subsection B, well it applies to federal agents but they do not let state employees off the hook either and they go one step further:

“For the purposes of this section, “public servant” means any officer or employee of this state or any political subdivision of this state, including legislators and judges, and any person who participates, as juror, witness, advisor, consultant or otherwise, in performing a government function.”

William Kennedy [send him email] is the State Director for the North Carolina Tenth Amendment Center. A strong supporter of the Constitution, Declaration of Independence and the Bill of Rights with special emphasis on State Sovereignty protected by the Tenth Amendment.

12 thoughts on “Arizona Firearms Freedom Bill Proposes Jail time for Violations of the 2nd Amendment”

SB 1049 would expand the definition of “school” in ARS 13-3102 (Weapons Misconduct) to include post-secondary educational institutions (i.e., colleges and universities). The proposed laws would make possessing a firearm on post-secondary educational institutions a Class 6 Felony. Under current law it is a misdemeanor to possess a firearm on K-12 school grounds and firearms policy on colleges and universities is controlled by the governing boards of the institution. The passage of SB 1049 would empower criminals while disarming their victims.

SB 1050 would outlaw the possession of any magazine or other “feeding device” that holds more than 10 rounds and make their possession a Class 4 Felony. With the millions of semi-automatic firearms with standard capacity (i.e., no limits) magazines possessed by law-abiding Arizona gun owners, this would do nothing more than a create a new class of criminal whose only crime is the possession of a hunk of plastic and metal that politicians have deemed evil. We also question the rationale of anyone who believes that the construction of an inanimate object affects the behavior of the person possessing it.

HB 2376 would allow law enforcement officers, when contacting anyone possessing a firearm, to make a non-professional assessment of their mental state, and if, in their sole discretion, they determine that person may be a danger to themselves or others, seize their firearms, and request they be carted off for a court-ordered mental evaluation. This is an awful lot of power to hand someone who might disagree with your fundamental belief system. After all, if you believe you have the right to have the means to defend yourself, you must be crazy – right? That certainly appears to be what the sponsors of this bill believe.

HB 2378 would eliminate state preemption over the disposition of surrendered and confiscated firearms, allowing for local politicians to destroy, rather than sell, firearms, as required by current law. In medieval times ignorant people believed that inanimate objects could be possessed by evil spirits, and therefore should be destroyed. Today, sadly, too many politicians obviously hold the same beliefs.

HB 2379 would automatically make anyone subject to a restraining order a “prohibited” firearms possessor, regardless of the reason for the order.

HB 2380 is the ultimate slap in the face to law-abiding gun owners. It would abolish Constitutional Carry. Only criminals would have the freedom to carry when and where they desired without government permission. Or, maybe that was the intent of this legislation?

HB 2381 would arbitrarily classify virtually all semi-automatic pistols and rifles as “assault weapons”, and require that all transfers of these firearms be tightly controlled and only allowable via a licensed firearms dealer. Violators face a $10,000 fine and arrest. If your pistol or rifle looks offensive in the eyes of some politicians, you must be a bad person and need to be monitored closely.